Flat panel displays, such as field emission displays, are well known in the art. A field emission display employs an array of field emission devices (FEDs). An FED is activated by applying the appropriate electric field to extract electrons which, in a field emission display, are directed toward a light-emitting material on a face plate. An example of a FED is given in U.S. Pat. No. 5,142,184 issued to Robert C. Kane on Aug. 25, 1992. Typically, an array of conductor material is employed for selectively addressing the array of FEDs in the field emission display. The conductor array typically includes at least two types of electrodes: the cathode conductor and the gate conductor which, when the appropriate voltage is applied to each electrode, provide an electric field of predetermined field strength. Generally, the cathode conductor and the gate conductor formed at right angles to each other to facilitate the selective addressing of the electron emitting structures. The cathode conductors are typically electrically isolated from the gate conductors by a non-conducting dielectric layer. During the formation of the displays, however, defects, such as pinholes, can form in the dielectric layer which result in electrical shorts between the cathode conductor and gate conductor at the site of the defect. A single cathode-to-gate short can effectively ruin an field emission display. These shorts are difficult to locate and difficult, or impossible, to remove.
Accordingly, there exists a need for a conductor array for a flat panel display which significantly reduces the formation of cathode-to-gate electrical shorting and from which cathode-to-gate electrical shorts can be easily removed with minimal loss of display functionality.